Moments

Genius Unleashed at Beaver

Student Story: Max Myers ’23

Since Max first joined the Beaver community this September, he has spent much of his R-Time (study hall), after school time, and even his precious recess time in the R+D Center, exploring and creating new projects on his own.

This winter, inspired by Batman, Max worked on a grappling hook that our iconic mini stuffed beaver can use to launch itself across the room. This project has gone through a dozen iterations and Max enthusiastically tackled every problem during the design and building process.

Next up, an elevator for his pet hedgehog.

Seeing Sound in R+D

Students in Kirk Averitt’s Select Singers class partnered with R+D staff to create tonoscopes, tools that visualize sounds. They built speakers from scratch and used sand that responded to the vibrations from sound from YouTube videos, computer keyboards, and finally, their own voices!

Student Story: Chloe Page ’18

There are so many exciting projects taking place in the R+D Center every day. In our new series, R+D Student Stories, we will highlight studies who are pursuing their passion and taking advantage of all the new building has to offer. Our first student story features senior, Chloe Page ’18:

While participating in the NuVu program last year, Chloe was surprised to find herself connecting to engineering and science. As a student who has always been passionate about art, she was able to draw connections to her design work.

This fall, Chloe spent much of her free time in the R+D Center designing with code and printing in 3D. She is in the process of applying to art schools with her impressive portfolio.

She was able to continue her NuVu work and deepen her passion with the resources in the R+D Center. Good luck, Chloe!

Teamwork, iteration, grit: BeaverAUV RoboSub Team

Five Beaver students dove into a complex robotics and engineering project to design a robot together.

“We learned an incredible amount, not only about the technical aspect of designing an AUV, but also about the far more applicable skills of creatively solving a problem, troubleshooting that solution, and managing time and resources over a large-scale, year-long project.”

No need to choose: Becca Barnes ’18 combines her passions to create an impact

Junior Becca Barnes was deciding between several opportunities for her Hiatt Summer Fellowship this past summer. With passions for healthcare, art, and service, she had a tough time narrowing her choices. So she didn’t. Over the course of the summer, she split her time between Newton-Wellesley Hospital, Lovelane, Perkins School for the Blind, and the Kennard Park Art Trail.

“With guidance from the Hiatt Center, I learned a tremendous amount, which helped me become a better volunteer and person along the way.”

Creating a kingdom to learn grammar: Students become “Lords of Language”

Middle School English teacher John Greenberg challenged his sixth grade students to conceptualize and create a “World of Words.” On one side, there’s the Webster Oxford’s Lords of Language; on the other, the Barbarians of Slang. Students battle it out by creating buildings representing parts of speech.

“The thing I love about this project is that grammar is no longer associated with dry, rote learning and is instead embraced as a creative experience. By doing, making, and tinkering, my students immerse themselves in learning.”